Jody was abandoned by his mother as a baby. With a father who was in and out of jail, Jody quickly slipped into a life of drugs, theft, and homelessness. Eventually Jody found God, but his drug addiction still continued to wreak havoc in his life. Jody ended up losing his family and his home before he fully surrendered to the Lord and was finally adopted into God's family.
Jody's Path - From Abandonment to Adoption
Jody's path has led him from abandonment to adoption.
His mother went away while he was still a baby, leaving him with a dad who was in and out of jail.
Jody often had to live with friends or other family members. He was introduced to drugs, sex and abuse at an early age. Jody began smoking marijuana at age seven. He became a father at 16 and was addicted to crack cocaine by the time he was 17 years old.
A World of Darkness
Jody quickly slid into a world of darkness; including theft, drugs, homelessness, and doing anything necessary to support his drug habit.
Jody met Terri in 1992, who shared with him the message of salvation. They were married a year later. On their wedding day, Jody received a calling from the Lord that he was to be in ministry, but he could not get free of his drug addition.
Running From God
For 10 years he would battle with crack cocaine; in and out of rehabs and often living in the street; eating out of dumpsters, begging for money, and sleeping on benches, in sheds, or wherever he could find shelter. Jody ran as far as he could from the call of God on his life.
During this time, he also suffered the death and loss of his youngest son. Later, he lost all contact with his oldest son when he signed adoption papers while high on crack. Eventually, he lost his family and his home. In March 2003, alone and in jail, Jody called out to God for help.
Full Surrender
Jody fully gave his life to the Lord that day and was adopted into God's family. Since then his own family has been restored and Jody was delivered and set free from all drugs! He quickly began ministering in outreach to the homeless and the addicted. Now he's back on the streets, this time feeding and ministering to those who are still trapped.
Jody attended the college home based Master's Commission program at Southeastern College in Lakeland, Florida.
The past 2 years have not been easy. There were trials and struggles, but through the trials, God has delivered Jody from low self-esteem and depression. He has given Jody a deeper hunger for more of Him, and He has healed a broken and hurting marriage!
Jody is currently building Aiming High Ministries with this wife Terri. He is the founder of "From Crack to Christ," an outreach support group for drug addicts, and has organized public events to share Jesus with the unsaved.
Jody desires that his testimony bring hope to the hurting, salvation to the lost, freedom to the addicts, and healing to their families. To contact Jody or for more information, visit Aiming High Ministries or send him an email.